The Allies of Old; Book Two Renewal: Chapter One "The Dawn of a New Age"

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Book Cover created in acrylic by the extremely talented @therealpaul

If you have not read the first book of the series, Reborn, it is advisable you do so before reading Renewal or you will be lost. This link will provide you with a series summary as well as all sixty-eight chapters of Reborn

Chapter One

Jared prowled restlessly through the jungle near the edge of the Uruguay river, hoping to snag the scent of something worthy of the hunt. He spent day after agonizing day sprawled out near the great Mocona falls, waiting for relief that didn’t come. Why? He thought in exasperation. What the hell was she waiting for? He had been forced to relive the details of their last encounter and had come to the shaky conclusion that the human girl may have been lying.

Shaky, what a fucking laugh. A human that lied was along the lines of a being that breathed. But it was the intent he didn’t comprehend, why lie?

Another traitorous voice in his head whispered that she may have simply been mistaken. And if that were true…he threw his fist into a nearby tree creating a large hole, startling birds from its branches high above his head.

He stared blindly at the splintered wood. It didn’t matter. He did not want her.

His body called him a liar even as he thought it. The image of him sinking his teeth into the vein at her neck as he claimed her like an animal caused his prick to throb painfully. He had always been a male of voracious physical appetites but never had he obsessed over a specific triangle of intimate hair, every pair of legs he’d spread had been as good as the last. Until now.

He told himself that isolation in a jungle where there were no thighs to plow was taking its toll…and almost believed it.

He blurred from the site of his fist explosion and forced himself to calm as he moved stealthily through the trees.

He stilled and raised his face to the slight breeze, all of his senses going on high alert as he caught the scent of a large cat.

He tracked it with his ears and nose and moved as silently as death in its direction. A few moments later he spotted it, a sleek black panther crouched and ready to pounce on a small unwitting animal. He moved until he was about ten yards behind it and dropped into his own crouch. He lunged at the same moment it did, trapping it beneath him and wrapping his large arms around its middle as they crashed to the forest floor. It struggled violently to free itself as Jared brought his hand up and grabbed the fur on one side of its head. In one swift motion he sank his fangs into the beast’s jugular.

He froze as the first taste of its blood hit his tongue, then released it and leapt away in shock. He watched in amazement as the panther’s body contorted and the black fur receded. When it finished its mutation a deeply tanned and naked young man with long ebony hair had taken the feline’s place.

Jared regarded the creature warily, wondering why it didn’t turn and run, it did not stand a chance against him in human form.

“Vampiir,” the young man whispered in awe.

Jared flipped through his language files and landed on the correct dialect for this area of the world. “Cambiador de formus,” he replied, “shape shifter” in the boy’s tongue. He knew of these beings, but other than the Lyncane it was the first he’d ever encountered.

The young man came to his feet and stretched to a height of over six foot two inches tall. He looked in the direction of the falls and Jared noticed they were visible through the trees in that particular spot, almost as if a narrow path had been cut directly to them.

“The legends are true,” the boy said, a smile stretching across his young face. “this marks the beginning of a new age!”

Jared lifted a brow in question.

“My Great Grandfather spoke of this many times. In our old writings it states that one day a panther and a vampiir will meet in the trees near the edge of the thundering water. And this meeting would signify the dawn of the Age of the Others, a time when all that is different in the world would unite against the evil ones in a great battle.” He grinned widely. “And I, Caius of Cawishana, fulfill this great prophecy!”

He had lowered his voice into a rumble as he spoke the last words and for a moment he stood erect and proud. Then abruptly he laughed slapping his thighs. “I cannot wait to rub it in Desiderio’s face, he will be so jealous!” He looked at Jared and explained, “Des is my brother, he always thought he had a special destiny, but too bad for him that I am the special one!” He laughed again without a hint of self consciousness.

Jared studied the boy in mild bemusement and determined he had not yet left his second decade though he had the body of a man.

“You’re not an overly talkative hombre are you? That’s all right, I talk enough for three people, or so mi madre tells me.” He looked towards the deeper woods than back at Jared. “Come with me to my village and we will have a celebration with you as the guest of honor.” He swept his hand towards the forest.

Jared shook his head slowly and turned to walk back to his camp, thinking he would have to hunt later--and avoid large cats.

“Wait, where are you going?” Caius chased after him and made the mistake of gripping his arm.

Jared bared his fangs and threw the boy to the ground, watching as he scurried backwards fearfully, blinking in surprise.

He glared down at him for a moment longer then turned away again.

“No, please don’t go. Maybe you don’t understand what I’m saying? You called me a shifter of forms but perhaps you don’t….

Jared stopped and turned slightly. “I understand. I just don’t accept your invitation, human,” he growled, his eyes flashing in warning.

“You don’t like humans?”

Jared began walking again and the foolish youth persisted in following him, but this time kept a healthy distance.

“But I’m not a normal human, surely that makes a difference!”

“No,” he replied without turning.

“But no one will believe me if you don’t come!”

“Because you’re a liar?” He kept his steady pace wondering why he was responding.

“No! I may have told a tall tale or two in my time…but you….” Caius trailed off. It did not appear he would change the large male’s mind. He would just have to convince his people he was telling the truth. He sighed heavily for a moment but couldn’t hold onto the defeated feeling. Smiling again he raced off to his village.

Jared walked into the lean-to he’d constructed and sat on the makeshift bench feeling unsettled. It had been a long time since he’d spoken to anyone who did not have an air of discontent. The boy was exactly the kind of human whose company he used to enjoy, seemingly innocent and wholesome with no hidden agendas. Perhaps being a shifter did make a difference .

Ultimately it didn’t matter, the idea of sitting around a campfire with a group of humans, even altered ones, filled his head with images of charred corpses and headless bodies. They could not be trusted.

He went out hunting to tamp down his growing aggression, snaring several smaller prey, then went back to his shelter in hopes of a dreamless sleep. Lately his dreams had been filled with turquoise eyes and a soft white backside.

His lids were just closing when his senses went on alert. Something was coming. He sat up and cocked his head trying to identify what caused the alarm. He heard the snap of a twig nearby and moved into a position of attack.

The face of an aging woman came into view closely followed by Caius.

“Don’t come any closer. I did not invite you here,” he snarled.

Caius looked at him beseechingly. “But my grandmother has waited her whole life to see one of your kind. She calls you the angels de la guarda.”

Guardian Angel. He could almost laugh, except once it had been true. Not anymore.

“I guard no one but myself, and I assure you I am no angel.”

The woman spoke then, her voice as wizened as her wrinkled face. “But you were, LeJarien.”

His eyes widened in surprise.

“Yes, I know who you are. Also who you were and will someday be once more.”

She came closer and he could do nothing but stare.

“I see you are not ready to accept your fate. I see the female as well. You wish for her to release you from torment, but do you not know in your long life there is no such release? Do you not know of the hell and suffering a broken bond will cause you? You believe you know suffering of such a magnitude, but it does not compare. Go and claim your mate LeJarien, save yourself such pain. You have a destiny which will not be denied.” She turned and walked back towards the woods.

Jared woke and sat straight up heaving in a breath. It had been a dream. His heart thundered in his chest and he willed it to slow. It had seemed so real. He frowned into the darkness. He had known males who had suffered a broken bond. Yes it had been terrible, but the duration of agony was limited and nothing so dire as hell. And there was no guarantee that the female wouldn’t break the bond at a future date when he’d grown accustomed to her. Which would be worse. Far worse, because he would have to kill her then, along with the male who dared comply. His hands clenched into fists at the imagined scenario, rage bubbling beneath the surface.

He knew he would now have to find Caius’s village and assure himself the woman did not exist. He was not foolish enough to assume it was merely a dream that held no meaning. Once upon a time prophetic night time visions were a common occurrence.

He blurred out into the night, stretching his senses and located the scent of the boy. He settled himself on the branch of a tree just outside the small village and went into full dim to wait for the sleeping natives to wake.

Generously created for me by @son-of-satire